The Beer Nut: Spencer abbey releases first U.S. Trappist beer

Wednesday

Jan 22, 2014 at 4:49 PMJan 22, 2014 at 4:49 PM

By Norman MillerDaily News Staff

This week, St. Josephís Abbey in Spencer has released its first beer, the Spencer Ale. It is the first beer in the U.S. to receive the official "Authentic Trappist Product," one of only 10 monasteries in the world allowed to use the label.For those not familiar with Trappist beers, this week Iíll provide kind of a primer of what they are, and some of the ones you can get. Next week, Iíll feature a sit-down interview with the monks of St. Josephís.First off, what is a Trappist beer? Trappist is not a style of beer. The International Trappist Association is made up of monasteries that belong to the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance and sell products commercially. The goal is to raise money to run the monasteries as well as helping people in need.The Authentic Trappist Product label is awarded to monasteries that produce their products within or near the monastery. Other than beer, the other items that can be deemed Authentic Trappist Products include cheese, liquor, bread and chocolate.With St. Josephís Abbey receiving permission to use the label, there are now 10 monasteries that now brew authentic Trappist beer. Six of them are in Belgium, two in the Netherlands and one each in Austria and the United States.Again, Trappist does not mean a beer has to be a specific style of beer, although most of them tend to be Belgian styles of ales. The biggest similarity is almost all of the Trappist ales Iíve had a chance to try are top-notch.Many of the Trappist beers are available in the United States. The easiest to find is the Chimay line of beers, brewed by the Scourmont Lez Chimay in Belgium. They brew three beers, known as the Chimay White, Chimay Red and Chimay Blue. The colors have nothing to do with the types of beers; itís just the color of the labels.The Red is a 7 percent alcohol by volume (ABV) dubbel, which is malty beer with just a bit of hop flavor and some spiciness. The White is a tripel a 9 percent ABV beer that is stronger than the dubbel and the Blue is a Belgian strong ale, which is also 9 percent, but tastes even maltier and more fruity flavors from the yeast.Another relatively easy to find Trappist beer is the Orval Trappist Ale from the Orval Abbey in Belgium. This beer is a 6.2 percent ABV Belgian pale ale. This beer has more of a hop bite than many of the other Trappist ales. It is crisp, slightly earthy and has some pleasant tartness.A personal favorite is the Rochefort beers from the Abbaye Notre-Dame de Saint-Remy, also in Belgium. They brew the Rochefort 6, Rochefort 8 and Rochefort 10. As the numbers get higher, the alcohol by volume goes up. The Rochefort 6, is a pleasant Belgian dubbel that is 7.5 percent ABV, while the Rochefort 10 is an 11.3 percent ABV quad.Other Trappist beers available in the U.S. include the beers from Achel and Westmalle (both from Belgium) and the Koningshoeven beers from the Netherlands (I had a very interesting birthday involving Koningshoeven, if you ever see me in person feel free to ask about it, I canít put it in a family paper).One of the most famous Trappist beers, and one of the most rare, is the Westvleteren 12, brewed at the Saint Sixtus Abbey in Westvleteren in Belgium. This beer gained huge notoriety a few years ago when several online beer sites named it the best beer in the world and a large black market developed for this beer, which was only sold legally at the monastery in a couple of local businesses.About two years ago, needing extra money for renovations at the monastery, Westvleteren 12 was sold in the U.S. for the first time in a limited number of stores and one day only. Lines formed and the beer sold out. Was it worth it? Itís a really good beer, but I donít think Iíd go through the effort it took to get it.So hereís a little background on Trappist ales and some of the ones available. If youíre going to try the new Spencer Ale, give a few of these to try to see the varierty of beers being brewed under the Trappist designation.Must-Have Beer of the WeekThe Must-Have Beer of the Week is the brand-new Victory Brewing Company Hop Ranch.The Hop Ranch is a 9 percent ABV double India pale ale. This is a very fruity double IPA. When you take your first sniff of the beer, youíll notice melon and even a touch of orange. Flavor wise, expect pineapple and honeydew. Itís a treat.Email Norman Miller at nmiller@wickedlocal.com or call 508-626-3823. Check out the Beer Nut blog at blogs.wickedlocal.com/beernut. Follow him on Twitter at @realbeernut. Also check out "Norman Miller, The Beer Nut" on Facebook.

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